Quick Cryptic No 3067 by Hurley

Author   TemplarPosted on Categories Quick Cryptic

A neat puzzle from the ever-reliable Hurley, with a good mix of clues and a cracking Dad-joke. It took me 07:33 and I hope you enjoyed it too.

Definitions underlined in bold.

Across
1 Appeal of strange archaism (8)
CHARISMA – Get going with an anagram [strange] of “archaism”.
5 Crossword feature, everything ultimately clear? (4)
GRID – Onwards with G [everything ultimately] + RID [clear].
9 Learner at church door might have this (5)
LATCH -On again using L [learner] + AT [at] + CH [church].
10 Untimely disclosure in peril — so disorganised (7)
SPOILER -Discover another anagram [disorganised], here of “peril so”.
11 Climbing plant of creamy white colour, not gold (3)
IVY – Blinking IVY, the bane of gardeners. IVORY is the creamy white colour; remove “or”, which is the heraldic term for “gold” [not gold] to get the plant.
12 Refuge in Tuscany a builder finally revamped (9)
SANCTUARY – Yes, another anagram [revamped] – of “Tuscany a r” [r being “builder finally”].
13 One seen as different if making a comeback in film (6)
MISFIT – Even though I knew it didn’t parse, when I had the M and I checkers I decided it must be “Matrix” and wasted time trying to justify it. I should instead have focused on the wordplay: FI [if making a comeback] inside MIST [film]. My LOI.
15 Confused store with right list (6)
ROSTER – “Store” is made into an anagram [confused] with R [right].
17 Made to conceal weapon, article left something applied to soldier? (9)
MARMALADE – Crumpets were clued as breakfast items recently; now we have the equally heretical suggestion that “soldiers” (as in fingers of toast) are to be covered in marmalade instead of being dipped into a soft-boiled egg. Is nothing sacred at the Setters’ Breakfast?  MADE goes round [to conceal] ARM [weapon], A [article] and L [left].
19 Interest in British silver (3)
BAG – You need B [British] + AG [silver]. As in “Not my bag, man”.
20 Concession about name for shellfish (7)
SCALLOP – Lured away from the straight and narrow by my expectation that “name” would indicate N, this took me a moment. It’s SOP [concession, as in “give a sop to Cerberus”] contains [about] CALL [name].
21 Strike out and render a service to some extent (5)
ERASE – Oh, it’s a hidden [to some extent] – inside “render a service”.
22 Maybe rowers  boasted (4)
CREW – Very neat double definition, the second being the past tense of the verb to crow. That usage is flagged by most sources as British and archaic, but may be familiar from the King James Version of Peter’s denial of Jesus (eg “And immediately the cock crew” Matthew 26:74 KJV).
23 Wary, promises to pay after share-out, with first part of addition included (8)
CAUTIOUS – Ends with IOUS [promises to pay], coming after CUT [share-out] including A [with first part of addition included].
Down
1 Element serene as clique on regular basis is accommodated (7)
CALCIUM – LQE didn’t look likely for every other letter of clique so it was easy to see CIU [“clique”]. That goes inside CALM [serene].
2 With change of heart, put one’s name forward in suitable way (5)
APTLY – You “apply” for a position by putting your name forward; change the central letter [change of heart] of “apply” from a P to a T to get the answer. Tricky.
3 Unfriendly lip, one’s habit unfortunately (12)
INHOSPITABLE – Original surface. It’s an anagram [unfortunately] of “lip one’s habit”.
4 Stone worker’s two family members (5)
MASON – Lump together MA + SON.
6 Showing dependence, payment containing pounds I advanced (7)
RELIANT – Dredging up RENT for [payment] was my obstacle here. That contains L [pounds] + I + A [advanced, as in A Levels, for example].
7 Classic  hat (5)
DERBY – Double definition. There are five English horse races known as the “Classics”, the other four being the Oaks, the St Leger, and the One & Two Thousand Guineas.
8 Delay in mail, quiet — one intended, they say (12)
POSTPONEMENT – Ornate IKEA clue. POST [mail] + P [quiet] + ONE [one] + MENT [intended, they say – aural wordplay for “meant”/”intended”]. Phew.
14 Outside expert on navigating the web? (7)
SURFACE – Groan. If you “surf” the internet a lot you could be called a “surf ace” … well I laughed, COD from me!
16 Compensation as daughter becomes good — move back (7)
REGRESS – a letter swap clue, in which you have to think of a word meaning “compensation” in which D can be swapped for G [daughter becomes good] to make a new word meaning “move back”. So it’s REDRESS becoming REGRESS.
17 It’s nice to hear Manchester United survive in Cup initially (5)
MUSIC – first letters [initially] of “Manchester United survive in Cup”. Not all music is nice to hear – I give you Dissonant Death Metal, for example.
18 Clinical pharmacy shows character (5)
ALPHA – hidden [shows] inside “Clinical pharmacy”
19 It’s next after 18!  Well done! (5)
BRAVO – double definition. I’m not generally a fan of cross-referring clues but this one is rather good. Since 18 was ALPHA my immediate thought was “beta”, but of course that’s too short. What we need here is the next letter after alpha in the NATO alphabet, not the Greek alphabet.

90 comments on “Quick Cryptic No 3067 by Hurley”

  1. LOI GRID – had to do an alphabet trawl. Oh dear.
    Yes, a shocked laugh at MARMALADE PDM. Did smile at SURFACE. CNP various inc SCALLOP, not my BAG, BRAVO and NHO anyone say CREW instead of Crowed.
    So thanks vm, Templar.

  2. MISFIT, SURFACE, BRAVO, APTLY, POSTPONEMENT all biffed, so thanks to Templar for the explanations. An average time of 21:11 to solve. COD MARMALADE, although surely a boiled egg should be the soldier’s destination.

  3. I’m with Mike Harper on requiring a full slice of toast for my marmalade, which I usually restrict to holidays, as I normally have porridge and fruit for breakfast, unless I’ve run out of bananas, in which case I’ll have scrambled eggs on toast with bacon and tomatoes. I look forward to running out of bananas, but in the interests of healthy eating, try not to do it too often. Anyway, from CHARISMA to CREW with a delay while parsing GRID, in 8:26. No problem with APTLY, which then led straight to LATCH and INHOSPITABLE. Thanks Hurley and Templar.

  4. A slowish solve, but with enough pennies collected by the end to make me reminisce about arcade games. Inhospitable and a bifd Postponement finally opened up a tricky grid (x2), but loi and CoD Marmalade made up for earlier frustrations. The soldier is just the narrow piece of toast; what it’s used for is down to personal preference. Lightly buttered for egg dipping, or smothered in delicious thick marmalade are just two options. 23mins in total, so just in time to nab a window seat. Invariant

  5. Another raised eyebrow here for marmalade soldiers. My breakfast seven days of the week involves a slice of toast and marmalade, and the thought of cutting it up to form soldiers is absurd. Incidentally, my marmalade is Frank Coopers Vintage Thick Cut (available at Sainsbury’s, other marmalades are available!), and is totally delicious. I would urge others to try it!
    My time for today was 8.20, which for me is a pretty decent time for a Hurley. I think I was on his wavelength today.

      1. As you and I are of the same vintage Jack, I wouldn’t mind betting that as a child your mother would have been buying Robertsons Golden Shred, which seemed to be the only one available in the fifties. They had a marketing campaign that encouraged children to save tokens to get a free Roberstsons golly brooch. Little did we all realise at the time, and the same applied to my mother I’m sure, of the racial connotations. The age of innocence!

        1. You’re right about buying Golden Shred, but we also had Silver Shred, the lemon version, which was always my preference at the time. I saved the golly tokens but never got round to sending in for the brooch.

    2. I have graduated from Extra Thick Cut via Vintage to Fine Cut, as mrs andyf prefers it and I have come to agree with her.

  6. Rather slow all round today and needed an aid to get SURFACE. Not on Hurley’s wavelength at all I’m afraid.

    FOI – 9ac LATCH
    LOI – 5ac GRID
    COD – 17ac MARMALADE (I’m not getting into the soldiers debate).

    Thanks to Hurley and Templar

  7. 18:34. Spoiler alert couldn’t get this grid and found no sanctuary in Derby which took far to long to arrive at.
    Like others my soldiers invariably get dipped into a softly boiled egg although I am rather partial to a marmalade soldier with a British chipolata cut in half lengthwise and plonked on top (after I’ve had a few with mustard on)
    A clever puzzle but avoided the SCC and ended up with a QTPi
    Thanks Templar and Hurley

    2. I haven’t tried the sausage and marmalade combo, but it’s no weirder than bacon and maple syrup. But when I was a child, we always put marmalade (probably Robertson’s golden shred) on fried bread, after what is now called a full English but was just a fry-up in those days! Absolutely delicious 😋

  8. I’m pretty sure I’ve come across ‘marmalade’ as military/naval slang for the gold braid applied to uniforms, and the somewhat derogatory use of the word for the senior officers wearing it.

      1. Yes, you’re right. I was probably getting my foodstuffs mixed up! But I do seem to remember an old WWII film where marmalade was mentioned in an unlikely context.

    2. I thought that gold braid was nicknamed “scrambled egg” – a different breakfast item.
      Happy to be put right if “marmalade” is correct though.

      Edited – Oops! X-posted with andyf

  9. Got a bit stuck in the MARMALADE, nearly fooled by the SURFACE, but those two clicked and I was safely done. Enjoyably thought provoking, thanks Hurley.
    Great blog, Templar, apart from the appalling abuse of IVY which should be an essential component of any proper garden, even small back yards such as mine. Easy to control with a little attention, usually evergreen, ecologically significant. I have at least five varieties in different forms, colouring and size.

  10. 7.05

    I sometimes wish we could just dispense with the crossword and enjoy the fun banter. Marmalade and reminders of Juliet Bravo. Who needs wordplay?

    Par-ish sort of time here. Not sure I’ve seen the ARCHAISM = CHARISMA anagram before. Neat.

    Thanks Setter/Hurley

    2. …but what would we talk about and how would we start the conversation. We are all so unopinionated 😂

  11. Thought this was a particularly good puzzle from Hurley with gave us a few smiles and much satisfaction in solving – thank you.
    Enjoyed reading the blog, thanks Templar.
    Also had LAPSE initially and had entered APPLY on the strength of that, though it didn’t parse all that well.
    Sorted out by the arrival of INHOSPITABLE.
    Came to MARMALADE after thinking of toast soldiers and originally considering “margarine”. Enjoyed previous comments about the MERs caused by marmalade on soldiers but, having been thoroughly appalled at the thought of marge instead of butter on a nice toast soldier, marmalade seemed far the lesser of two evils.
    I no longer make marmalade but did use to produce a dark, thick-cut preserve that would have been anathema to fans of Golden Shred.

  12. A slow but steady 26:15 for me. Not quite sure why all the fuss about marmalade soldiers. Surely if marmalade on toast is acceptable, it makes no difference if it is cut up to make soldiers, perhaps to serve to a small child. It’s still toast and marmalade. Anyway, I was very interested to learn about the spellings of the NATO alphabet (or alfabet I suppose), so thanks to Kapietro for that. LOI SURFACE, COD to MARMALADE. Thanks Hurley and Templar.

  13. A very enjoyable 12:38, marred only by a brief flash of horror at the marmalade sacrilege. I was lucky enough to get BRAVO before ALPHA, which made the latter very straightforward.

    And a very enjoyable blog too, thank you!

  14. No problems. I’ve come across the surface and crew clues before. I wouldn’t spread marmalade on anything. I prefer extra virgin olive oil.

  15. Easier than the last couple of days but needed blog to parse GRID, RELIANT (rent, of course) and SURF ACE which now gets COD vote. Same thoughts as others re MARMALADE. Didn’t know about Alfa/alpha – interesting discussion. Thanks all.

  16. This Hurley’s QC is reliable as ever but do feel the wordplays are getting trickier. Enjoyable nonetheless. Parsing of aptly hit me soon after I hit the pillow as I do the QC around midnight these days. I may have heard wrong, scientists say 1 AM can be a aha moment.

  17. 14 minutes with LOI and COD SURFACE.
    Also liked SPOILER.
    I think CREW in this sense has come up recently, but maybe not in a QC.
    An interesting discussion above.
    David

  18. Hate marmalade but – unlike some – loved the clue! My COD. A model QC, some lovely smooth clues.

  20. An enjoyable puzzle but we were somewhat off the pace at 13:51. LOI CAUTIOUS. I liked the clue construction for MARMALADE (which came pretty quickly) but am otherwise in the ‘just no’ camp. Thank you for the research, Gordon (and AndyF), but soldiers are for boiled eggs! Thanks, too, to Templar and Hurley.

  21. 21:55 for me, hoping there is still a chair available in the SCC. Lots of anagrams in the acrosses in the top half led to a slow start as I usually need the crossers for anagrams.

    Have added marmalade to my shopping list after this discussion, although there aren’t many options here in California.

    Thanks to Templar and Hurley.

  22. DNF. Failed to get surface without aids. otherwise came together fairly well and no complaints.
    FOI charisma
    LOI crew
    COD marmalade

    thanks hurley and templar

  23. 13 mins.

    13 on 15 x 15 in over an hour. Total inability to read clues in the right way.

    Thanks for the blog.

  24. A bit slow today. I didn’t parse BRAVO, and even looked at 18, but it didn’t click. Brain not fully functioning today – got a lot on.
    13:52 FOI Latch LOI Cautious COD Sanctuary – it reminded me of when we went St Francis’s hermitage in Assisi many years ago, which was anything but a refuge. Hordes of bored Italian school children roaring around the place. Rather a shame.
    Thanks to Mara and Templar

    Although my daughter is a massive death metal fan (yes, you read right), I’m not aware of the dissonant form, and feel rather relieved that that’s the case 🤣 The ‘traditional’ form is too much for me, apart from a couple of tracks.

      1. Not me (although I do like Halo by Soil) but she and her father used to go to a lot of gigs featuring scary bands with charmless names! I’ll ask her if she knows Cannibal Corpse. I’m trying to imagine a KC in the mosh pit 🤣 If you saw either of them, you wouldn’t think it was their kind of music!

  25. 7:12, I seem to be back on the wavelength for the QC today, liked the marmalade soldiers!

  26. 13:02 I think I always spelled it MARMELADE. My research shows the quince (marmelo in Portuguese) was originally involved. And the interesting etymology “Marie est malade” referring to a bout of seasickness suffered by Mary, Queen of Scots and alleviated by some orange jam is probably wishful thinking.

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